Though the central midfielder was born in Paris, he has never played for France, even as a junior.

He has, however, been asked to represent Mali -- his parents' native country -- on several occasions.

Having previously told former France boss, Henri Kasperczak, he was not ready for international football in the past, Kante's old manager, Caen boss Patrice Garande, told France Football he believed the player was keen to play for Mali.

Having gained much wider exposure helping to drive Leicester's unexpected Premier League title tilt, Kante has now been tipped for a call up to the France squad for next month's friendlies against the Netherlands and Russia.

"For the moment, I haven't taken a decision," Kante said. "I'm concentrating on my club. We'll see what happens."

In terms of the title race following Sunday's key Premier League matches, Kante admitted that Danny Welbeck's injury-time winner for rivals, Arsenal, was a big blow to Leicester's title chances.

"For the moment, it's going very well at Leicester," he said. "We've had a very good start to the season and we'll have to continue but this defeat is a disappointment because it was an important match.

"We're a united team - we fight for every ball. Our squad is having a good season. We have to continue."